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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: content · court · scale · coach · pitch · saw · wave · sharp

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. court — for sport
  8. content — happy
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. saw — the tool
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. scale — in music
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. sharp — clever
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. court — of a king
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. court — of law
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. scale — size or range
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. content — the amount
  24. pitch — completely

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com